Hot and Humid
by EdwardWongHauPepiluTivriskyIV
Summary: Summertime! Schools are out and its hotter than ever. Sometimes you just have to say how you feel. When times are hard, I will be there. Gohan/Videl
1. Chapter 1

It's so hot here in Connecticut...ok. crickets chirp in background Well, heres a story from me...

--

"It's so hot!" complained Goten as he lay on the floor of their small country home in the middle of nowhere.

"Sorry lil' Goten, but the air conditioner is broken," apologized his mother, Chichi, as she made breakfast for her sons. "Go wake up your brother," she commanded. Goten went upstairs to wake up his older brother. Creeping into his older brother's room, the young one started jumping on the end of his brother's bed. Pillows and a thin blanket were strown about the floor of the room and a sleeping Gohan lay sweating, but fast asleep, until Goten had started jumping. Gohan was clad only in a pair of shorts.

"Wake up Gohan!" Goten shouted jumping up and down continuously, laughing all the while.

Now half asleep, Gohan shouted, "Tell mom I'll get ready for school in ten minutes!" Little Goten laughed; Gohan always said funny things when he was asleep.

"There's no school Gohan, its summer!" the little "fireball" shouted, but then fell off the bed when a pillow flew off the floor and connected him in the face. Apparently, Gohan unconsciously picked the fluffy pillow off the floor and threw it, not really thinking of where to throw; only to make the jumping bean cease action. Goten, in turn, took the pillow and threw it back at his brother. Recieving a pillow to the face, Gohan only turned over, took the pillow and put it over his head.

"Tell mom to put the air conditioner on, it's too hot to get up," muffled Gohan through his pillow.

Knowing one thing that got Gohan up throughout the school year, Goten went up to Gohan's ear and whispered, "Videl's here."

Instantly Gohan open his eyes and shouted, "Shes here! I'm not even dressed yet!" Then he jumped out of bed, knocking Goten off the bed in the process, and grabbed his orange training pants and a white t-shirt and hurridly got dressed.

"What did mom say to her?" Gohan asked pulling his shirt over his head. Goten grabbed Gohan's ankle to stop him from running out.

"I was just joking Gohan, mom wants you up and you wouldn't get up, so I just said that," little Goten pleaded.

"Don't do that!" yelled Gohan as Goten detached himself and both of them walked to breakfast.

"Good morning Gohan," smiled Chichi as she set breakfast down for her and her two sons.

"Good morning mom, why is it so hot in here?"

"The air conditioner is broken, any ideas?" questioned Chichi. Both sons shook their heads.

"Well mom that things old," said Gohan.

"I guess we'll have to get a new one."

"Hey mom," said Goten as he stuffed some eggs into his mouth.

"What is it dear?" replied his mom.

"When I went to wake up gohan-"

"Goten don't even!" threatened Gohan. Goten didn't listen; he continued.

"Gohan said tell mom I'll get up for school in ten minutes." Chichi and Goten laughed. Gohan continued to eat like nothing happened.

"And then..."

"Goten don't even," Gohan had a tell-mom-and-I'll-kill-you-look on his face. Goten shut up.

When breakfast was over Goten called Trunks and went to the central aired Capsule Corp. and Gohan helped his mom clean up. Afterward, he went outside and layed on the grass. It had to be about 98 degrees or something and boy was it humid. Haze hung around like a thin cloud of smoke making surrounding unbearable.

"So bored!" he shouted to particularly no one. Then he looked around. One large rock caught his attention and the memory of teaching Videl how to fly came to mind. Videl had thought if she stood on the rock she would learn faster. Big mistake. She fell face first onto the grass. Gohan laughed and Videl had gotten mad, but not for long.

--  
Gohan started laughing. 'I should train with Videl today,' the Son thought going into the house to make a phone call.

"What are you doing today?" Chichi questioned as she was cleaning.

"Nothin really, I was gonna call Videl and Train or somethin'," said Gohan as he went to his room. He retrieved his notebook in which Videl wrote her phone number and memorized it, then put the notebook away and went to make his call.

"Hello," chimed a voice from the other line.

"Hey Videl, hows your summer?" questioned Gohan.

"Gohan you jerk, schools been out for two weeks now and you haven't called me once!" shouted Videl.

"Heh...sorry Videl, its just I-"

"Been lazy," she finished.

"Well..." said Gohan.

"I've been practicing trying to fly," Videl replied.

"That's good; on the ground I hope," said Gohan as he stifled a laugh, which failed as he released a chuckle.

"It's not funny Gohan!" Videl shouted.

"No... Of course not," Gohan said trying to hide the laughter in his voice.

"Anyway, I think I really improved, want me to show you."

"So you're training hard for the tournament?"

"Yep."

"Really, I was going to ask you if you want to come over here and we could train and you could show me your improvment."

"Sure, its 8:15 A.M. so I'll be there at 8:45; is that all right?" questioned Videl.

"Sure, I'll cya then," said Gohan.

"Cya," said Videl. Both of them hung up. He turned around and Chichi was looking at him with a wow-my-son-has-a-girlfriend-look.

Ignoring it, Gohan said, "Mom is it ok if Videl comes over today?"

"Sure honey," Chichi walked away grinning. Gohan went outside and layed down on the grass, but ending up falling asleep in ten minutes.

"Gohan, you lazy bum," yelled Videl as she tapped Gohan with her foot in the stomach and he opened his eyes. Videl looked down at him. She was wearing a pair of Navy blue sweat shorts and a light blue tank top ready to train.

"Hey Videl," said Gohan getting up to a sitting position. Videl sat down next to him.

"Its so hot today," complained Videl, "And I'm so bored."

"Well, it's been the same here, except my air conditior is broken and it seems like its cooler out here than in there," replied Gohan. "So what do you want to do first, fly then train or train then fly?"

"It's up to you," said Videl, "This morning I did some training outside in my backyard."

"Then your already warmed up," said Gohan as he got into a fighting stance and powered up a little bit. They started to fight. About 25 minutes later Videl fell to the ground. Gohan powered down and went up to Videl.

"You o.k.," he questioned concerned.

"I'm just a little tired, I don't know why, but I usually don't get this tired. Just give me a moment," Videl said and put an arm over her eyes.

"I'll go get you some water," Gohan said as he ran to his house. He got two ice cold water bottles out of the refrigerator and ran back outside. When he got back outside Videl was still laying the same way she was when he left. Gohan put the water bottle to her forehead and immediately she jumped. Gohan helped her up to a sitting position. She pushed his hands away and sat up. He handed her the water bottle and she only drank a little bit.

"C'mon lets get back to training," said Videl standing up slowly.

"I think you should take it easy for a little bit," replied a concerned Gohan.

"No, I must get strong before the tournament!" argued Videl.

'Seems like Vegeta,' Gohan thought to himself.

"How come you're not sweaty or anything?" questioned Videl as she wiped her face with her hand.

"Well, I've always trained and been outside in the sun for long periods of time since I was very little and I'm part saiyan, so I guess it takes me a while to sweat or something," said Gohan. "You've sweated a lot, you sure you're ok?"

"Gohan, I'm fine," she shouted, "It's just a little headache, lets go!" Gohan hesitatly powered up; but a little lower than before and they started fighting again. Gohan noticed that Videl was weaker than before and once in a while staggered on her feet. After about five minutes, Videl just couldn't stand up anymore. She closed her eyes and fell back. In one swift movement, Gohan caught her and layed her down on the grass.

"Videl, whats wrong?" questioned Gohan worridly as he shook her shoulder.

"Gohan..." Videl said weakly, not opening her eyes.

"What is it?" he questioned eagerly.

"I feel...so light-headed and..." she put her right arm over her eyes. Gohan put a hand to her forehead.

"Get your hand off me," Videl yelled as she weakly tried to remove his hand with her left hand, but couldn't so she put her hand down.

"Videl, you're burning up! Why didn't you say anything!" yelled Gohan.

"I thought...I...felt...fine," said Videl slowly.

"Can you get to your feet?" questioned Gohan.

"I...I think..." Videl was accompanied by Gohan to getting to her feet.

"Can you walk?" questioned Gohan.

"I..." Videl fell unconscious and Gohan caught her...

--

Oooooooo cliffe... What do you think is wrong with Videl?? Tell me what you think of my work of art.


	2. Chapter 2

Hey, its been a while since I have updated this story. I am in the same predicament I was when I started this story; it is so hot here in Connecticut this week. During the hot weather last time one of my reviewers said 95, thats not hot, but you got to factor in the humidity also. It sux. You said you lived in Arizona so you know hot, I understand that. I hate summer sooooooo much. I love winter. I wish it was winter right now. candy the duck, gohangirl7711, Nickel Hound, limelie, aragorn566, jennyroseangel, diamond-wind, and Lina, hope you guys didn't forget me.

--

"Videl!" Gohan yelled to the unconscious girl in his arms. No response. What was he to do? Gohan panicked. Then he carried Videl into the house.

Chichi was in the kitchen and quickly jumped up at the sight before her eyes.

"What happened!" she yelled anxiously.

"Well, we were training and she said she had a headache, but brushed it off and we kept training," Gohan stated anxiously.

"What! You saw she was not feeling good, yet you kept on fighting!" Chichi screamed.

"It was not me mom, she wanted to keep going."

"Well you should've stopped if you saw she was weary!"

"What do we do mom?" questioned Gohan.

"First we need to set her down," commanded Chichi. Gohan placed Videl on the couch in the living room while Chichi went into the kitchen to get an icepack. After placing a hand on Videl's forehead, Chichi quickly took it off, for it was burning. She then placed the icepack on the girl's forehead and got a paper fan to fan her. Gohan sat on the edge of the couch next to her and watched concernedly. After about 5 minutes she opened her eyes slowly and groaned.

"Where am I?" Videl questioned groggily. Then she noticed Gohan and Chichi. With a pounding headache, she tried to sit up, but laid back down for the headahe was excruciating . The icepack fell, so Chichi replaced it.

"Your in my house Videl. We were training and you fainted," Gohan told.

"I did?"

"What happened? You told me you had a headache, but you didn't mind it."

"So I am weak," she said gloomily as she closed her eyes placing her right hand over them.

"Your not weak."

"Then why am I laying here like this?"

"I think you suffered from heat exhaustion," diagnosed Chichi. "Gohan, go get her some water." He went to do as he was told. When he brought it back, he lifted Videl into a sitting position and gave her the bottle of water. She gulped it down. The icepack fell off the couch forgotten.

"Gotta be careful honey," Chichi assured.

"You want me to call your father?" questioned Gohan.

"No! Besides, hes on tour somewhere," said Videl.

"So your home alone?" asked Chichi.

"Yeah, if you don't count the maids and butlers around," said Videl nonchalantly. "Its really hot in here."

"Sorry sweety but the air conditioner is broken," Chichi apologized. Realizing Gohan was still holding Videl up, he set her back down.

"Come on Gohan, lets let her get some rest. I'll get you up for lunch Videl," said Chichi going to the kitchen.

"Videl if you need me just call ok." Gohan reassured.

"Why am I so weak?" Videl question more to herself as she closed her eyes and put her right arm over them. Gohan took one last look at her and went into the kitchen.

--

Chichi had Gohan running all sorts of errands. First he had to return a book to Bulma; walking into Capsule Corp with the central air felt great. Then he had to pick up some groceries; anything cold came home warm. Also, Bulma loaned Chichi some money to buy a new air conditioner because Chichi had the same air conditioner for a long time. (My mom had the same air conditioner for twenty years. Finally it died last year and we got a new one.) It was very irritating going to five defferent stores because a/cs were sold out. When he finally managed to buy one, it was 11:45. He brought it home.

"Mom, I'm back. Hows Videl?" he questioned as he walked through the door. No response. Gohan went to the kitchen.

"Can you install the air conditioner, lunch'll be done in 3 minutes," said Chichi.

"Alright." Gohan started to take the old a/c out of the window when he heard a crash in the livingroom. Dropping what he was doing, he and his mom ran to the livingroom. There was Videl lying on the floor close to the kitchen. Kneeling down, Gohan went to pick her up. She was very pale and burning up.

"Mom, she needs medical help!" paniced Gohan.

"I'll call an ambulance!"

"They'll never find us out here." Gohan stated obviously as he picked up Videl, opened the door and flew out. Since his house was in the middle of the boondocks there was quite some distance between his house and the hospital. He flew as fast as he could, protectively holding an unconcious Videl. 'Why wouldn't she take a break?' he thought to himself looking down at her. 'Shes strong, but everyone needs a break. Shes human so she knew she had to rest a bit. She knew it was very hot so if she was tired she could have just said. I just hope shes all right.'

When Gohan found an empty parking garage, he landed and quickly ran to the entrance. As soon as he walked in, a chunky sunburnt nurse at the front desk yelled, "Oh my gosh Videl!" Gohan walked over to the desk.

"I think she has..." he had to think for a moment what his mom had called it, "Heat Exhaustion." The receptionist called the doctors and they brought a stretcher. One doctor commanded he put her on it, so he layed her down gently. Then they rushed her away. Gohan was about to go with them, but the receptionist pointed and told him that he had to go sit and wait in the waiting area.

The waiting room was a big spacious area off to the side of the reception desk with many plastic violet shaded chairs. The walls were a light creme color and everything seemed to clash. In the middle of the room was a small coffee table with old magazines; one of which featured Bulma on the cover. There were many people in the waiting area. Some had bottles of water, while others were red as lobsters from sunburn. Gohan sat down and picked up the magazine with Bulma on the cover, which was called "Women Geniuses" He looked for the article featuring her. It started, "Bulma Briefs, owner of Capsule Corporation has revolutionized..." Gohan did not find out for he was too anxious about Videl and started pacing. One woman, with short brown hair in her mid-40s watched him go back and forth. After a while, it got quite annoying.

"Can you please stop, your making me nervous!" she said.

"Sorry," Gohan apologized and sat down. After about 15 minutes, he fell asleep in his chair.

-----------------It was 3:45----------------------

"Excuse me sir," a woman called, shaking Gohan's shoulder slightly.

"Hmm," he replied waking up.

"Are you the one who brought Videl in?"

"Yes. Is she ok?"

"Yes she is. You may go see her now. She is in room 7."

"Alright, thank you," Gohan bowed and went to find room seven. Upon reaching it, he knocked. "Come in," came a voice, so he opened the door.

"Hey Videl," said Gohan walking into the room. The room Videl was in was quite large. The walls were white and the floor was a grey heather. One window stood parallel to the door. There was one bed in the room surrounded by different machines and things that kind of freaked him out. He had developed a fear of needles from his father. Videl was laying with the bed raised to a sitting position and was connected to an I.V. giving her fluids.

"What took so long?" questioned Videl. She looked a lot healthier.

"What do you mean?" questioned Gohan.

"I was waiting a half hour for you."

"Uhh... yea. I kind of fell asleep," said Gohan putting a hand behind his head.

"I kind of figured that, seeming I had to get someone to see if you were still here."

"Don't worry, I wouldn't leave. I wanted to see if you were alright," reassured Gohan.

"I'm alright, it takes more than heat exhaustion to keep me down," said Videl confidently.

"Of course, of course," smiled Gohan. "I'm going to get that chair over there," he pointed to a green cushion chair in one corner of the room."

"Forget it," said Videl, who moved a little to the left and patted the space beside her. Gohan thought for a moment, then sat down next to her and put his left arm around her.

"I'm not usually this weak," Videl stated not looking at him.

"Even the best fall down sometimes" comforted Gohan. "So what is wrong?"

"Well I have a moderate case of heat exhaustion caused by a medication I was taking," Videl stated.

"Why were you taking medication for?"

"Well last week, I had very bad allergies so I took some medicine that had some side effects, but didn't pay any mind to them. Turns out they mess up hunger and thirst or something like that and also the medicine expired. The doctor told me they took it off the shelves, but living the way I do, people barely know whats going on." Videl sighed.

"But your alright now?"

"I told you I'm fine, but they want me to stay overnight just in case."

"Won't that suck in here," shuddered Gohan.

"Yeah, I'm not a big fan of hospitals, but their food is alright." Videl noticed Gohan looking the I.V. in her left arm. "I don't like it, it itches sometimes." Gohan laughed. They had spent a couple of hours talking, until the nurse kicked Gohan out at dinnertime.

"I will see you tomorrow," replied Gohan as he got up. He leaned down to give Videl a hug, which she returned with one arm and then he was off.

----------------

When Gohan got home, he walked into a cool house and heard the low sounds of an air conditioner. Walking into the kitchen, he saw the air conditioner was put in and running on high.

"Hey sweety, hows Videl? I hope shes alright," asked an anxious Chichi.

"Shes alright, they want to keep her at the hospital overnight to be sure." Gohan reassured.

"Thats good to hear. I finished installing the a/c and it works like a dream."

--------------

As evening had set and night took over, Gohan went outside and laid down in the grass. The humidity hung in the air, but was not as bad as it was earlier in the day. Dinner was over and was now sitting in his stomach. After Goten and he helped Chichi with the dishes, Gohan decided to take a walk. Laziness took over so he just laid in the grass and looked up at the stars. A sudden wind picked up and blew through the trees. This wind felt cool and promising. The wind blew a few clouds that scattered across the sky then increased more and felt great. Gohan smiled. 'Maybe this heat wave is finally over.'

0000000000000

"Miss Videl do need anything before I go?" questioned a short chubby nurse after checking Videl's pulse and blood pressure.

"Nothing thank you," replied Videl politely.

"Looks like a storm is coming," inquired the nurse looking out the window. "Thats some wind."

"Then again can you do me a favor?" Videl questioned.

"Sure thing hun."

"Can you open the window about a third?"

"Alright." The nurse opened the window a little ways up.

"Thank you."

"Sure thing darling. Goodnight." said the nurse turning off the light and leaving.

"Goodnight." A strong, cool breeze filtered through the window into the room. 'Just what I need,' Videl thought happily closing her eyes.

--------------

So what do ya'll think?

There is a sentence above picked from the song Collide by Howie Day. I love that song. Last May, I got injured in Martial Arts and heard this song going home. Everyone falls down sometime. It does not mean you are weak.

This chapter was written throughout last week during an ugly heat wave. The cold front came through on Friday and Saturday night was cool and beautiful. Hope you all like and rr.


	3. Chapter 3

During the night, Videl woke up a few times. The first time was due to the loud rumbles of thunder outside. She got up, dragged her I.V. cart with her and went over to the window to peer out at the storm. Outside, rain fell down heavily; gusty winds blew trash and various objects about, lightning streaked across the sky and thunder roared. What a mess! Storms interested her.

After a while of watching the storm, Videl walked back to her bed and fell asleep. The second time she woke up was to a little girl running through the halls screaming, "I WANT TO GO HOME!"

"SHUT UP!" yelled Videl irritated. Aren't kids supposed to be asleep at this hour? Then she heard footsteps and assumed a nurse took the girl back to her room. The third time Videl woke up was due to just plain restlessness. The storm had mostly let up except for the winds and a gentle drizzle. The clock on the wall read 2:02 A.M.

"Wish Gohan was here now," Videl thought to herself. "He has been such a great friend. Maybe he would make a great bo--. Wait a minute!? Am I falling for him? Why am I feeling like this? I guess theres no use fighting it. I hope he comes to visit tomorrow." Videl did not know where these thoughts were coming from and stared at the ceiling hoping an answer would just fall from it. Not literally, but hoped some thought in the back of her mind would make the thoughts of fancying Gohan alright. This was not the first time she had felt this way. When she and Gohan became friends, she found herself wanting to spend more time with him. Bonding over the reveal of his secret posed enjoyable and challenging for he was teaching her how to fly. Also, when he gave her a visit showing both concern and relief she was already provened he had a deep caring for her; maybe for the fact he put his arm around her and stayed for a couple of hours.

What if the half-saiyan did not feel anything for her, other than just being friends? Revealing her feelings would not only cause her to make a fool out of herself, but also wreck their friendship or make it very awkward for them to hang out with one another. Learning to fly would be very uncomfortable.

"Maybe it's a sign of weakness, but I want to give this relationship a try," she thought finally and stood up. Toting the I.V. cart, Videl decided to go for a walk, hoping there was some action going on at two thirty in the morning. Afterall, it was a hospital; they never closed and something always happened. To her dismay, there was nothing going on. Aside from a few nurses walking around, the halls were vacant with only the sounds of patients snoring softly in their beds. The nurses did not notice the young woman roaming the halls; they probaly thought everyone would be asleep so they must've not noticed. At the end of the narrow hallway was a large room where two patients stayed, each in their own corner of the room. Apparently, one patient, a man in his upper twenties flicked on the light and yelled at the other patient, a man about twenty years old to stop snoring so loud, without peril. The man awake must've been very annoyed for he took a large pillow off his bed and threw it at the snoring man.

"The question, the answer is 12," mumbled the now awake younger man, looking around confused.

"Stop snoring!" the older man growled before retrieving his pillow and jumping back into bed. The two men seemed like brothers with dirty blond, almost brown hair and were tall and lanky. Videl chuckled to herself, but then jumped back when she heard someone call her name. Turning around, she came face to face with the nurse she saw before she went to sleep.

"Miss Videl, why are you up so late dear?" she questioned.

"I just needed to stretch my legs," Videl told sheepishly, putting one hand behind her head, but then seeing the nurse smile, knew it was alright.

"I'll walk you back," the nurse offered, placing the folder in her hand into a plastic bin on the side of the corner room's door.

"Alright," replied Videl, not ready to go back to bed, but reluctantly going anyway.

"What was so funny?" questioned the nurse. Videl told her what had happened in the room and they shared a laugh. Occasionally, she wondered if the hospital was in contact with her father and thoughts of him tellng her she couldn't fight in the tournament or worse, he'd take it out on Gohan would correlate, so she'd force herself not to think about it. Hercule couldn't possibly know; he was about two hundred miles away...somewhere, at least that was the way she saw it. When her father would go on one of his tours, she would not keep track, only the date he was coming back. He would call maybe once or twice, when he wasn't busy with his "adoring fans."

When they arrived at her room, the nurse bid her goodnight and left to do her runs, leaving Videl in the dark, lonely room. What was someone to do at 3:04 A.M. with an I.V. in their arm? Nothing.

"Might as well try to sleep," Videl thought bitterly as she lay down and closed her eyes.

--

"Miss Videl, are you going sleep all morning?" questioned someone distant and with what seemed like a Russian accent. The sun's rays gleaming through the vines were blinding, even with her eyes shut.

"Ugh," Vidal groaned, placing her arm over her eyes and realizing her I.V. was gone, and stretched her arms after opening her eyes. Looking over, she saw another nurse looking at her chart. Agrivated and cranky, Videl knew she should have stayed in bed instead of roaming the hospital. Now she was tired and knew they weren't going to let her sleep the morning away.

"Good news, you get to go home today," the nurse told.

"Woo," came the sarcastic reply. Videl noticed the mark the I.V. left and ran a finger across it, not recalling when they took it out.

"Would've felt uncomfortable if I removed the I.V. if you were awake," told the nurse, her accent protruding with every word. She then proceeded to check Videl. "How are you feeling this morning?"

"Fine," Videl sighed as the nurse took her blood pressure.

"By the way, you have a visitor outside."

"Really?!" Videl wondered.

"I told him he had to wait until you were checked out. He said his name was

Gohan. Very handsome man, he is." At that comment, Videl smiled. "You like him." This was not really a question, but more of a statement.

"Well..." stalled Videl, thinking of whether to answer truthfully. Afterall, the nurse did not know Gohan and most likely would not tell him of her answer. "Hes really good to me," was all she said as the nurse finished up.

"I am finished and now you can change and leave when you are ready," she told as she wrote up the chart and collected her things. Videl stood up and stretched once more before retrieving her clothes and going into the bathroom to change. When she walked out, the nurse was on her way out.

"I'll go get Gohan now," she said as she pushed the door open.

Gohan entered the room with one hand behind his back. "Hey Videl how are you feeling?" he greeted while walking up to her. When he was right next to her, he revealed his other hand holding a small cream colored teddy bear holding a purple pillow that said 'Get well soon.'

"Hey, thanks," she replied happily holding the bear. Though not being very fond of stuffed animals, the thought proved Gohan did care about her. "Kind of cheesy, but I like it," she smiled. "I get to leave now." Stifling a yawn, she told Gohan that she didn't sleep much last night.

"What happened?" Gohan questioned. Satan and Son left the room as she told him all that went on that night.

"Well, at least you don't have a little brother who finds fun by jumping on your bed with you in it to wake you up. You only had a screaming child," Gohan laughed, replying to Videl's telling of the little girl who ran around screamig for her mommy.

"That was some storm we had last night. Some trees around my house went down, but it took all the humidity away and is only 73 degrees out there," Gohan told.

"That's good to hear. The humid weather is what put me here in the first place. After signing out, the duo walked out into the sunny day.

"So how are you getting home?" Gohan questioned.

"Well, I'm not sure I want to go home just yet. There's nobody there to really talk to, unless you count the maids and butlers," Videl spat.

"You can come to my house. The company is just my mom and brother, but they like you, so it'll be alright," Gohan offered.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes I'm sure."

"Alright, let's go," said Videl.

"The fastest way there is to fly, so grab on." Videl put her arms around his neck; he picked her up and flew off. Upon flying, she clutched her bear and thoughts that occured the previous night flashed through her mind once more.

She has the perfect chance to tell him...

Right now was perfect...

It was only the two of them...

He had to have felt the same way...

When they arrived at the house, Videl had not said anything. Trees that had fallen lay scattered and various branches had been blown about. The house was fine though. Windows were open to let the warm breeze through the house and all was calm. When Gohan landed, Videl let go and both entered the house. Chichi was in the living room relaxing while Goten was playing with some toys on the floor.

"Videl! How are you feeling dear?" questioned an anxious Chichi as she stood up and went over to the duo.

"Videl!" yelled Goten running up to Videl, jumping up and giving her a hug.

"I'm fine now, it was just some heat exhaustion," told Videl holding Goten who then jumped down.

"Videl did not want to go home yet, so I invited her here."

"Did you get in contact with your father yet?" questioned Chichi.

Videl thought for a moment then told the concerned woman, "I'm not exactly sure where he is at the moment, so I cannot call him."

"He should've left you a telephone number or at least told you where he was going," Chichi told, angry at the young woman's father's negligance.

"He gets so wrapped up in his tours, half the time he doesn't know where he is," Videl told with a forced chuckle. The situation did not lighten up.

Before Chichi could reply with another retort toward Hercule, Gohan placed a hand behind his head and chimed in with, "We can go check at Videl's house later to see if her father called."

"Alright, but if he did not call, I promise you I will personally hunt him down and give him a piece of my mind!" Chichi growled, sitting back down on the sofa and crossing her arms. Wide-eyed, Videl could only stare in wonder as knowing Chichi, could actually visualize the woman hunting down her father and beating him over the head with a frying pan. Looking over at Gohan, he had the same look and she assumed he had the same visualization.

The family plus Videl watched television for a while, until lunchtime in which Chichi went to prepare lunch for her children. Goten jumped between Videl and Gohan on the couch and gave Gohan the same look he gave at the breakfast table the previous day. Videl watched as Gohan gave that same glare.

"Do you like Gohan," Goten chimed innocently as he quickly looked at Videl. Gohan's eyes went wide as he grabbed Goten and put a hand over his mouth.

"He's okay," she replied simply to the child as he broke free of Gohan's grasp and sat on the opposite of Videl. Videl smiled at Gohan and catching it, smiled back, blushing slightly.

"Lunchtime!" Chichi shouted and Gohan thanked Dende she had called at that time. He was at a loss for words to fix the awkwardness Goten had placed between them and could only glance at Goten, who kept quite a distance between them. At the call to go eat, the three of them had gotten up and went to the kitchen.

--

Later that day, Gohan went with Videl to her house to see if her father had called to check in; much of their motivation due to Chichi's request. Gohan picked up Videl and flew up and into the open brillant blue sky.

"You know, once I am well and rested, we are going back to flying lessons," Videl stated as she held onto her friend. Gohan turned his head in the opposite direction, trying to hide a grin that always spread across his face whenever anyone would menchion because he would think of Videl and the rock.

"It not funny!" Videl shouted, knowing all-to-well what he was thinking. She placed her hands on either one of his shoulders and started shaking them as she told him it was not funny. That caught Gohan off guard and he swerved in the sky.

"Whoa! Gohan don't drop me!" Videl yelled, returning her arms around the Son's neck as he regained his composure in the air.

"You're the one shaking me and I didn't even say anything. Besides, I would never drop you. You're always safe with me," Gohan smiled.

When they arrived at Videls Mansion, the grounds were very quiet. A gardener could be seen in the far corner of the spacious front gardens, neatly mowing the grounds. Many trees and plants stood overgrown around the large home and beautiful flowers bloomed neatly in many neatly arranged patches. Everything looked well kept. Near the entrance, an overbearing statue of Hercule himself stood next to a fountain lightly spouting into its pool. The mansion stood in the middle of it all. The large white home looked to have four floors and many tall windows. Gohan has been inside a few times, but only in the wing in which Videl's room was located. He would land on the porch where her room is, in the morning and the two of them would head to school together.

This time, the two of them were entering through the enterance. Inside, cool air shot at them and Gohan assumed they, like Capsule Corp, had central air. There were a few maids and butlers tidying up and Videl stopped the nearest butler, a tall man in his early forties, if there had been any telephone calls from her father. He told her he did not know because he was returning from a vacation and to ask someone else. As they made their way deeper into the house, Gohan could only stare in awe as to way two people needed so many servants and space. Gohan felt comfortable in his little country home and would not trade it up for a large home as he was in now.

Videl asked another servant, a short maid in her late thirties if her father had called the house and she responded with a no.

"I could see why you would feel lonely in here, this place is huge," Gohan exclaimed.

"Dad says he needs his space to "get away from it all" when he returns from his public stunts, but this is ridiculous!" Videl spat. "I would much rather we lived in a quaint little place like you and your family does."

"Yeah? Mom says she would like to have a place as big as this," Gohan replied.

"I remember that. When I told her we have about forty rooms in here, her jaw dropped to the floor. She wouldn't like to have a place like this if she lived here for a week. The only thing I like about living here is the peace and quiet when I want to get some sleep," Videl told. As the two headed toward "Videl's wing," Videl told Gohan she wanted to get some sleep and he was welcome to stay and make himself at home. Gohan declined.

"I promised my mom I'd clean up the yard from the storm yesterday," he told. Then, hesitating a moment, Gohan placed a hand behind his head and looked off for a moment, seaching for the right words.

Now was the time to say something…

Now was the perfect time to tell her his feelings for her…

There was a connection the both of them felt…

"I'll see you tomorrow," was all that came out. Videl smiled and told him she was looking forward to seeing him tomorrow. Gohan jumped off the balcony and took off into the sky, mentally kicking himself for not saying anything.

Closing the balcony door and locking it, Videl wondered why Gohan had hesistated for a moment, but temporarily put it out of her mind as a king-sized bed was calling her name.

--

Won't someone just say something already!! Lol, sorry for the very late update.


	4. Chapter 4

'Gohan, you idiot, the words are supposed to come out of your mouth, not bounce around your head!' Gohan berated himself as he crossed his strong arms over his chest and sighed as he flew back to his house. 'She's my sparring partner. Won't it be awkward? Then again 18 and Krillin are training for the tournament and I doubt he'll be taking it easy on her or the other way around. Mom and dad got married after one—wait! I don't want to marry the girl. I just… Dad, I wish you were here right now to help me with this…'

Sighing again, Gohan looked down, realizing he had missed his stop a few miles ago and stopped mid-air, turning around and shooting off in the opposite direction, keeping his speed up to stop his internal conversation.

"Gohan! What happened?" Little Goten questioned as Gohan walked over to the area in which he was going to do the post-storm cleanup. Goten followed, picking up a nice-sized branch. "I thought you forgot where we lived," he said with a hint of concern.

"Heh heh," Gohan chuckled, scratching the back of his head with his right hand. "I guess I did for a second. You want to help me clean this up?"

"Sure!" Goten nodded as he placed the branch he was holding, close to the house. "I bet you my pile will be bigger than yours," the little Saiyan taunted as he eyed another branch, a good size similar to the one that started his pile.

"Loser has to wash dishes for a week," Gohan challenged, eyeing the branch also.

"Deal!" Goten chimed, taking off for the branch.

"I call that one!" Gohan claimed, darting to the same one.

"That's no fair! I saw it first!"

"Finders keepers!"

The duo combed the perimeter of the house and the area surrounding it to make sure their pile was larger; nobody liked doing the dishes, especially after Saiyans have left the table. The piles of branches were moved away from the house to make it easier to collect the ever-growing piles. Gohan's pile seemed to be filled with more thought than tree. Everything was going fine, until the internal conversation was accidently switched back on. Goten even reminded his older brother that starring at the branch wasn't going to put it in the pile, as he walked by with an armful.

"Goten! It's your turn to do the dishes!" Chichi yelled for her son, who went to turn on one of his favorite programs.

"Gohan said he wanted to do the dishes this week!" Goten yelled back.

"I did say that," Gohan said through gritted teeth as he got up, cleared the rest of the table and went to start the task. He peered out the window into the settling dusk as the winds continued to breeze about, stirring the trees and slightly sifting the two piles of blasted branches. Even blasted, Goten's pile was bigger. 'I just couldn't keep my mind off of her for five minutes!' the internal conversationalist turned scolder yelled. Frustrated, Gohan cracked the plate in his hand and it shattered, half the pieces falling into the sink, the other half landing on the floor.

"Not another one!" Chichi yelled automatically, zoning in on the incident. "What have I told you about being careful—"

"I'm sorry mom, I just have a lot on my mind," Gohan apologized, grabbing the pieces and throwing the in the trash.

"Are you worried about Videl?" Chichi consoled. "You saw her today. She's going to be fine."

"I know, but what if she thinks I think she's weak. I still want to train with her."

"Call her up and tell her then. And while you at it, let her know you can't live without her! Love her! Want her hand in marri—"

"Woah mom!" Gohan interrupted. "She is just my…..friend."

"You should still call her," his mother suggested.

Not wanting his mother to know he wanted to be more than friends with Videl, shrugged and said he would do it tomorrow and went to finish the dishes so as to avoid the looks he was receiving. Upon completion, Gohan joined his little brother on the couch, watching what was left of the show Goten enjoyed.

'What if he doesn't like me? If he did, he would've probably said something by now. Maybe I should drop a hint or something. What if we did start dating? He'll probably want to stop training or take it easy on me. I don't want to mess that up; I still need to improve my flying technique.' Videl thought back to the "rock incident," that always brought a smile to Gohan's face. He probably had a few awkward moments learning to fly himself, even though he told her how natural it came to him and seeing how his little brother Goten picks it up at a much quicker pace. 'I don't care! I've already decided on it last night! If he stops the flying lessons or training, I will force him to do it! I'm a Satan and we Satans always fight to get what is ours! ….I just hope he says something soon…..'

"The champ is home!" Hercule yelled into the vast mansion he called home. Videl, who was sitting on her balcony, starring into the night and enjoying the cooling breezes, heard her father and immediately ran down to greet him. She never realized how much she missed him until he came home. Since his passion was traveling around and promoting his "Hero Status," there was nothing she could do to stop that and just valued any father/daughter time they had.

"Dad, your home!" Videl yelled as she ran up to the Champ and hugged him. He squeezed her and told her he missed her a lot.

"I missed you too dad!" she smiled backed. After Hercule demanded his service team to bring in and unpack his luggage, he went to the enormous living area and plopped down on the sofa, not bothering to take off his shoes.

"Hey dad I—" Videl stopped herself short. 'Yeah Videl! Real smart! Spring it right onto your father that you want to date as soon as he gets home. He'll wonder what has been going on while he was gone and then everyone in Satan City will hear him going off for the next couple of hours!' "How was your trip? I'm sure there are plenty of stories you want to share," Videl coaxed, showing interest.

"You wouldn't believe the number of weakling out there!" Hercule began, what was going to be a very detailed venture that would make you feel as if you were there. The stories made their way to the dining area as the cooks prepared dinner for the duo.

As the story traveled closer and closer to home, Videl thought she would test the waters to see how he would react, but not enough so that Satan City would be able to sleep tonight.

"…and then I won the title you see on the mantel!" Hercule boasted pointing to the other room where a spot was made for the belt before he left and the servant that unpacked it was supposed to know to place it.

"That's great dad!" Videl smiled. "Another one to join the many! We Satan's fight to win!"

"You are just like your old man! Taught you everything I know! You and I will fill the room with victory!" her dad boasted, fist in the air.

"You know it! Hey dad, I wanted to ask you something?" Videl began.

"What is it?"

"There's a guy from my school that I want you to mee—"

"What? My little girl is dating? If I told you once, I told you before; you are not allowed to date anyone until I meet them to see if they qualify with my standards! He has to be as strong as your old man! Otherwise you can forget it!" Hercule tiraded, his voice echoing through the spacious setting.

'You're not the one dating him!' Videl wanted to say, but thought better. "I'm not dating anyone dad, he just wants to meet you and get your autograph," Videl fibbed.

He calmed down immediately. "Why didn't you just say that! Tell him to stop by tomorrow and since I am feeling generous, his autograph will be free!"

"Thanks dad," Videl sighed as they finished up and she went back to her balcony.


End file.
